MOTW- 2-10-08 GODZILLA VS THE SEA MONSTER (1966)

[Xenorama ™]

Akira Takarada ... Yoshimura
Kumi Mizuno ... Daiyo
Chotaro Togin ... Ichino
Hideo Sunazuka ... Nita
Toru Watanabe ... Ryota Kane
Toru Ibuki ... Yata Kane
Akihiko Hirata ... Captain Yamoto
Jun Tazaki ... Red Bamboo Commander
Ikio Sawamura ... Elderly Slave
Pair Bambi ... Mothra's Little Beauties
Eisei Amamoto ... Red Bamboo Naval Officer
Hisaya Ito ... Red Bamboo Scientist #1
Tadashi Okabe ... Red Bamboo Scientist #2
Kazuo Suzuki ... Escaped Slave
Shoichi Hirose ... Escaped Slave

this sure is a fun movie, with some great effects shots with monsters and other stuff. the new Shobijin look a little less innocent than the originals, but do a decent job with the role.

i love how some g-nerds twist themselves into knots trying to tie continuity together so the films fit "just right". how the heck DID Godzilla get in that cave? who cares, it makes for a spectacular entrance!

[Shonokin]

Where does a gazillion ton radioactive repitile sleep? Anywhere it wants.

I'm quite fond of this one myself. Saw it on the big screen during a break while working the SFGodzillafest.

The plot is pretty wacky and original for a G movie, though the focus on a criminal group plus focus on a monster has been done a few times now. This one did it with a style that screamed cooool 60s.

For some reason ukelele music tends to flow through my head when I think about this film.

[Torgaman]

I always assumed Godzilla used an underwater cave just to swim into the cave.I read in an issue of G-FAN that Bob Eggleton wrote "considered by some to be one of the best" though I certainly would never go that far.The film is a bit too slow early on for my tastes.Of course once good ol' G is romping around all is nearly forgiven.

[RedKing]

This is a fun G movie! It has a James Bond-ish feel to it with the eville Red Bamboo organization out to conquer the world. Of course, who needs a suave secret agent when you have a 50 meter rampaging radioactive behemoth availible to take those Commies out!! I've always been fond of Ebirah as I love sea creatures, and I also really like Ebirah's high pitched screch, it's one of my favorite Toho monster roars. This one is rather slow for the first 45 minutes or so, but the characters are likable and engaging, so it's not too bad. The cast is excellent and full of Toho favorites like Takarada,Tazaki, Hirata and of course the sexy Kumi Mizuno in tan makeup and island sarong! Masaru Sato's music is quite good and contributes to the Bond feel of the movie alot. The FX are uniformly excellent here, even though you can see the Godzilla suit start to deteriorate from all the water action(this suit would go on to be the water suit in the next several Godzilla movies, finally being discarded after Smog Monster). They also manage to acheive some expression on Godzilla's face just by the angles they filmed it from-ie when Oocondor dives at him and G's eyes snap open. I always chuclke at the look on his face, it's great! About 10 years ago I was an assistant manager of the seafood department at a local chain grocery store. We had chalk boards along the wall to put the specials up on and I used to illustrate the boards with pastel chalk. I almost always worked Ebirah into the lobster price sign. We also had a little TV and vcr mounted on the wall that played these god awful tapes of an Australian seafood chef with stupid recipes. One year for Halloween we got the OK to run a seafood themed movie marathon so I put together 2 different 6 hour tapes each with 4 movies and various clips and we'd rotate them throughout the day the week before Halloween and it was very sucessful. We ran all 3 Creature movies, Vincent Price's WAR GODS OF THE DEEP, DESTINATION INNERSPACE, Harryhausen's IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA, GAMERA VS ZIGRA and of course GODZILLA VS THE SEA MONSTER! We got alot of positive feedback on it from customer's and the store manager.

[Xenorama ™]

now that's a good idea for Hallowe'en! plus i bet it keeps the kids entertained and brings back fun memories for the parents.

i think the thief is the role of the Bond guy, though his not knowing how to sail a boat is an interesting foible for his cool guy persona. you'd think a guy who would break INTO a boat could pilot one, wouldn't you?

[hastur]

This was the first Godzilla movie I ever saw in my life !!

Must have been only three or four. I STILL remember the old house I lived in as a Mutant baby and that Ark of the Covenant size T.V. I viewed it on. Yup, the first memory I have of Godzilla (Or my entire life for that matter) is Godzilla and Ebirah throwing the boulder at each other ... No wonder I'm so F-cked up !!

I love it !!!!!

[Gwangi]

admin said:

now that's a good idea for Hallowe'en! plus i bet it keeps the kids entertained and brings back fun memories for the parents.

i think the thief is the role of the Bond guy, though his not knowing how to sail a boat is an interesting foible for his cool guy persona. you'd think a guy who would break INTO a boat could pilot one, wouldn't you?

Wasn't it fun when the series came from the point-of-view of bank robbers, inventors, astronauts, etc, and not so much from a military or bureaucratic perspective? Heck yes!

Fun, vastly underrated G-film. Ebriah is a great looking monster. Mothra makes a special guest appearance, and I’m surprised no one has mentioned Kumi Mizuno in her native outfit!

[Xenorama ™]

good point, and she does look amazing in her outfit.

[Torgaman]

I would have made a comment but too many people think I'm a pervert already.

[hman]

My first Godzilla movie. It's a fun movie that gets better as the years pass (I thought it was a bit pokey at first). I really like the scene when they sneak into the base and snoop around there. I don't know why, but I think it's very cool.

[Xenorama ™]

the score is such a nice change of pace. i love Ifukube's music, but it can get a little ponderous at times. i'd hate to have every Godzilla movie filled with the same music.